The Girl Called Alice
by Emma Catanzaro
Summary: On the eve of Mark's sixteenth birthday, he disappears. Just disappears. Into nothing. Two years later, on the eve of James' sixteenth birthday, he also disappears. Months pass, and Alice and Lorraine find nothing, no trace of Mark or James. Alice is devastated. There is one place she forgot to look. Wonderland. The queen's place of wonder.
1. Preface

You left. Your best friend disappeared, and you left. You didn't care, but you did care. You just didn't want anyone to know you cared. Because you loved him. With all your might. No one knew but your sister. He didn't even know. And now you are searching. Searching all over the world for him, but to no avail. He is gone. But there is one place you have forgotten to look, dear Alice. The land of cards and chess.

Wonderland.


	2. Chapter 1

Every night I cried myself to sleep. Every night I thought about him, despite what my therapist told me. He told me not to think about him and Mark, and what might have happened to them. But I can't stop thinking about them. They were apart of my life. And Lorraine's life. And they just disappeared. Into thin air.

It was horrible, that day. The day they told us what happened. The day Mark went missing, Lorraine locked herself in her room, and I just stared off into space. That's how I spent my days. James was there, comforting me. But I knew. He was crying, just like Lorraine, and he needed me more than I needed him. I just didn't realize that at the time.

It got better. Everything got better. Lorraine began to act like herself again, and James was able to stand on his own two feet. James' parents refused to accept that Mark wasn't ever coming home. They never put up a gravestone, but the three of us made a pact to go visit his favorite hiding place and drink a toast to him on the eve of his sixteenth birthday every year. Until tragedy struck again.

It was the night before James' sixteenth birthday. The three of us always did something together on the night before, just to be sure no one disappeared on us again. He said he would be right back. He just had to go get something from the garden. His birthday hat, he said. That boy was obsessed with hats. Always wearing one. But he never came back. Not once. We looked for months, but we couldn't find him. Both of the Manson boys had gone missing, and everyone was grieving. I was still grieving.

Always crying, always screaming in my sleep. Always, always, always. Never stopping to even take a breath or even look around me to see what's there. Never, never, never. I hated James and Mark for doing that to us. They killed the love in our hearts. The one that was constantly burning for someone that was always there. Not there anymore. Not anymore.

That was a year ago. One that went by painstakingly slowly. I hated myself and my parents didn't know what to do with me. Lorraine couldn't be around me without thinking about Mark.

"Alice? Do you want to go on a walk with me?" Lorraine interrupted my thoughts. Lorianne was speaking to me? The odd seventeen-year-old? No. I was imagining things again.

"I'm sorry?" I asked.

"Do you want to go on a walk with me? Into the garden? I know you and I haven't spoken in a while, but I want to change that. I'm still really upset about Mark and James, but Mom and Dad said we should try speaking to one another to see if we can console each other. I know I want to get over this..whatever it is. I want to leave this feeling of emptiness behind and throw it in the gutter. Please?" She asked, with a tired look in her eyes.

"Of course, big sister." I replied.

We went on that walk. We walked around the huge flower garden we had in our backyard for hours. Sometimes we'd talk, and sometimes we wouldn't And sometimes, we would just look at the sky and wonder 'When did everything get so complicated?"

I wanted to tell Lorraine everything. About how much I missed James and Mark, and how much I hated them for leaving us. I wanted to tell her how I was sorry I was for being so distant after Mark left. And how I just wanted to make sure James was okay. I wanted to know he wasn't being harmed in any way and that he was going to live a full life with the people he loves most. I didn't care if it was me or Lorraine, or someone else he's met in his lifetime. I just want to know he was okay.

Everyday. We did this everyday. We would talk or cry or just sit there, staring into the sky. I was happy I had my sister back. And I was getting better. Slowly.

Eventually, Lorraine and I stopped talking about James and Mark, and started talking about other things, like the color of the trees in the fall, or the sight of the birds migrating for the winter. It was all good. Everything was good between us. And our parents didn't have to worry about us. We were getting better, and I wasn't plagued by the nightmares anymore. They were gone. And our birthdays went by, and niether of us disappeared on the eves of our birthdays.

Lorraine eventually went off to college, and I was faced with dealing with high school alone. But it was okay. I was in a good place, and no one was going to put me back in those bad places. Senior year was going to be great, and if I needed Lorraine, she was just a phone call away. And that's all there is to it.

Homecoming

"Come on girls! We have to keep moving these tables! There's no way we're going to be finished in time if we don't keep moving!" I called. President of the Homecoming Committee and Student Vice President of the year. Nothing could be better.

"Yes, boss!" all the girls called.

Winter Formal

I wasn't president of the Formal Committee, but I was one of the representatives. Plus, Lorraine was coming home for the holidays. I had reason to be excited about one thing.

My Birthday

It was February again, and that means my eighteenth birthday was coming around! Eighteen was a big deal in my family. To most girls, sixteen was a big stepping stone. But after all that happened, we thought becoming an adult was an even bigger deal.

I was waiting for Lorraine in the garden, which was our usual meeting place when she came home. She stayed in the house, but she always stopped in the garden to see me first. It was late, but, I didn't care. I was going to be eighteen in twenty-four hours, and no one could bring me out of this mood.

"Miss? Is this your garden?" someone behind me asked.

"Oh! You scared me! Where did you come from? These gates are locked!" I exclaimed.

The person in front of me was a tall boy with bright red hair. Not a real red, but a fire truck red. His face was giving me a look of genuine interest and his big brown eyes suggested he was a mischievous young boy, but he looked as though he was my age.

"I'm special. Now, is this your garden? Because the roses are just beautiful! Especially the red ones." He replied with a smile.

"Well, it's not my garden, per say, but it's my parents. Mom loves roses, and dad loves working in the garden. It's a win-win scenario. I don't think I got your name, Weird Guy in My Parent's Garden." I said sarcastically.

"Peter. My name is Peter. Look at the time!," he pulled a golden pocket watch out of his white coat pocket. "I really must be going. Tell me, Pretty Girl, would you like to come with me? I know you long to be rid of this place. To go to a world where you don't have to worry about people dying or leaving or disappearing without a trace. You want to find your true love and tell him how you feel. You want to be in a good place and not have to put on a face for everyone else so they won't worry about you." he said with a sly look on his face.

The sad thing about this conversation was that it was all true. I was faking it to make sure all of the people I cared about were focusing on other things, rather than myself. I know I should have kept getting help, but I didn't, because I was scared. I didn't want to frighten my parents like I did before. They loved me and I didn't need for them to worry about me. I was perfectly capable of handling the nightmares and the terrors lurking around every corner. I can be okay to other people and not okay when I'm alone. I don't need anyone to care. I just need James back.

"How did you know that? And why won't you ask me for my name?" I asked, appalled.

"I told you. I'm special. Now that's something I'm not allowed to do. Now I really must be going. I'm late for a tea party, hosted by my lovely Aunt Millie. Now tell me, Pretty Girl, do you want to come with me or not?" He asked again,

"Why can't you ask me my name?"I asked again.

"Why must you ask so many questions, Pretty Girl? I just can't, alright? It's not happening. I won't ask you your name, but someone else will. Now, I am quite late for my Aunt's tea party. Will you please come along?" He replied, exasperated. He seemed irritated. Serves him right, scaring me like that!

"Fine, I'll go with you. but olny if I can tell my sister. She'll be here in a few minutes. I just know it." I replied, looking back towards the front of the garden.

"You can't tell you sister, Pretty Girl! It's supposed to be our little secret! No one can know! If you tell your sister, I'll have to leave without you!" He said with wide eyes.

"Please don't! I want to see where you come from! But I have to tell my sister! She's my best friend, and I can't just disappear without a trace like-" he cut me off.

"Your two friends. I know how that will feel to her, because I can tell what you've been through, but, Pretty Girl, I want you to come with me. You can't come with me unless no one, and I mean no one knows. It's the law. I can only bring one person with me once a year. It is law in the queendom. It's the only way I can take you with me." He said, putting his hand on my shoulder. He really wanted me to go with him. He sounded like he would be hurt if I didn't go.

I could always come back, right? There was nothing stopping me from coming back. I would come home and tell mom and dad and Lorraine that I was okay and that they didn't need to worry about me. I would do everything that James and Mark never did.

"I know you think you can come back, but you can't Pretty Girl. It's also a part of the Law. I can bring someone with me, but they can't come back of their own free will. Only one of the queens have to send you back." Peter told me.

"Why can't I go back on my own? I'm perfectly capable of finding my own way back." I replied. If I wanted to go home, I was going to go home.

"You just can't, okay? The queens will explain it when you get there. I promise. Now, we have to go. My mother will be worried sick about me." Peter said with a pleading look in his eyes.

I took a minute. I needed to make sure I knew what I was doing. Did I really need to leave my family just to get away for a little while? Yes. I did. I needed this to keep my sanity. It was absolutely necessary.

"Okay. I'll go with you. I just need-Woah!" I screamed as Peter grabbed my hand and pulled me with him at full speed to the back of the garden.

"Where are you taking me?!" I exclaimed.

"To a place of unimaginable things and fantastical creatures. Wonderland." he replied.

"Wonderland? I have never heard of such a place." I huffed.

" Ah, good. We're here. Mother will be cross with me. "'A good prince is never late.' She Always says." he muttered to himself.

"Wait just one second! You never told me you were a prince!" I exclaimed.

"It never came up. Now, grab my hand, and for the love of God, don't let go." he replied.

I grasped his hand tightly and he wrapped his arms around me in a tight embrace and jumped.

Right into one of the deepest holes I had ever seen.


End file.
